Into The Dark
by Niall Stylinson
Summary: Harry's not crazy. He's not. Or he didn't used to be. Maybe he is now. He doesn't know. Everyone seems to think he is. But he didn't just wake up one day this crazy boy for no reason. There was a reason he was this way. That reason was Louis.
1. Chapter 1

I'm crazy. I'm delusional. I'm a psycho. That's what they say. But I'm not. I do feel like I have started to go a bit crazy, but if any of these doctors had been through what I have or seen half of the shit I have, they'd feel like they were losing their minds, too.

I used to be normal. So normal. I went to school, I did my class work, I hung out with my girlfriend, I played football with the lads. My life was normal.

Then came Louis Tomlinson.

Louis Tomlinson and his outgoing personality, his stunning smile, his natural ability to make everyone he as much as glances at swoon over him. Or maybe it was just me that swooned over him the first time we locked eyes. He just had that effect on me. He was perfect and he caught my eye the second he stepped into my fourth period study hall.

_"You're late." The harsh tone in Mr. Warner's voice was nothing new to the class. He spoke like that all day. It was like he was in a perpetual state of anger. He was a large man and he practically towered over the boy who was standing in the doorway. This boy looked terrified, rightfully so. Everyone was afraid of Mr. Warner at first, most of us still are. We just hide it._

_"I'm sorry, sir," the boy said. "I got a bit lost finding the room. I'm new."_

_He reached into his pocket, pulling out a crinkled piece of paper and handing it to Mr. Warner. He snatched it from him and then read it, in a loud voice._

_"Louis Tomlinson. New transfer student from Doncaster, South Yorkshire," he raised an eyebrow at him. "Why the move?"_

_No one was really watching the two at the front of the room. A new student wasn't a big deal to anyone. But I couldn't look away._

_Louis shrugged and put on a charming smile. "Sometimes a fresh start is nice, right?"_

_Mr. Warner just grunted, handed him back his slip of paper along with a list that had all the study hall rules on it, and nodded towards... me? Oh no. Not me. Just the seat that was by me. "Take that empty seat beside Mr. Styles. Mr. Styles, raise your hand."_

_I did as I was told, and gave this beautiful new student a friendly smile as he slipped into the desk next to me._

_He returned my smile with one of his own, except his smile was different. It was brighter, and no doubt was it the most beautiful smile I'd ever seen in my life. My breath caught in my throat at that smile._

_"I'm Louis Tomlinson," he said, offering me his hand to shake. Formal. That was both unexpected and... cute._

_I reached forward, accepting his hand. "Harry Styles."_

_Maybe I held onto his hand a little longer than I should have, because when I looked away from our hands to his face, he was wearing an amused grin. My cheeks turned red and I pulled back, sitting straight in my seat._

_For a few long seconds, I felt him looking at me. But I kept my eyes on my notebook. I was so busy trying to act like I wasn't paying attention to Louis that I didn't even notice that the notebook page was blank. Louis noticed._

_"Can you see something I can't, mate?" he whispered._

_I snapped the notebook shut and turned to look at him. "What? No. Uh..."_

_He laughed. "I'm joking with you," he said. "Lighten up. Are you always like this?"_

_"Like what?" Was he insulting me?_

_"So jumpy."_

_I wasn't jumpy. Was I? I was just nervous. He made me nervous. I'd known this boy for a minute and he was making me feel like this. I couldn't tell him that though. I didn't know what to tell him. Luckily, he spoke again before I had to._

_"You're a jumpy little fella, but you seem nice," he said. He tore off a section of paper from the bottom of the list of class rules he'd been given, and after grabbing a pen from his bag, scribbled something down on it. He slid it onto my desk._

_"What's this?" I asked, picking it up._

_He laughed softly. "It's my phone number. Call me, and we can hang out. That sound alright to you?"_

_I looked up at him and he was smiling again. That smile... how could anyone say no to that smile?_

I scream bloody murder. I scream and scream and scream. No one comes to see if I'm okay. All the doctors are used to my screaming. They know I'll never stop this. They know that everyday I think about Louis and I think about the first time we met.

I think about how if I'd just said no, we couldn't hang out, that my life might still be normal. I never would have gotten to know him and fallen in love with this horrible boy. I'd be fine. I'd be okay.

But I'm not fine. I'm not okay. I did fall in love with that horrible fucking boy and the thought of how fucked up everything is takes up all of my thoughts.

I scream. But no one bothers with me.

"Louis!" I shout out his name, shout it from the top of my lungs. I do this a lot, just like I shout out the name of my old friends, my old loved ones. I don't have them anymore. Just like I don't have Louis anymore. But I don't want Louis anymore. I hate him. I'm glad we're apart. I fucking hate him.

"Louis!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Authors note: So I changed the way it's written just a little. Instead of using 'I', I'm using 'Harry'. Not much of a change. Also, this is all flashback, as you know from the first chapter. I'm not going to be writing present day Harry again until the last couple of chapters. I hope you guys like this chapter. Any feedback is great. :)**

Louis Tomlinson was a senior. Harry didn't know why he thought he'd be the same age as him, because study halls are for all grades. He just assumed he'd be a sophomore like him, a junior at the least. He didn't seem like a senior. Not that he wasn't mature enough, because he was very mature. He goofed around and was silly, but still mature. Seniors acted like they were so superior to everyone else. They rolled their eyes every time a freshmen or sophomore simply walked by them in the hall.

But Louis seemed to make it his job to smile at every single person he made eye contact with, no matter who they were. Harry saw him in the halls after almost every period that first day and couldn't help but notice this. It was weird. As the new kid, you'd think he'd be shy and just trying to blend in. That wasn't him at all though.

Louis was completely different, and Harry realized this really quickly.

The day after they met and he gave him his number was a Saturday. Harry sat in his room all morning, just debating whether he should call him or not. He wanted to, and he made a list of reasons in his head as to why he should. He was new, he didn't know anyone. Harry would be doing a nice thing by hanging out with him. They could be friends. What bad could come from that?

No bad at all. And he wanted Harry to call him, he gave him his number. He obviously wanted to hang out.

But he also had reasons why he shouldn't. They were dumb reasons, like what if he was just giving him his number because he was desperate for friends, and didn't actually like him. He didn't want him to hang out with him because he had no other options. And he wasn't sure what we'd even do. There wasn't really anything exciting to do in Holmes Chapel. You could buy really good and reasonably priced lettuce at the grocery store just down the street from Harry's house, but he didn't think that would be interesting to Louis. Or to anyone.

It was a quarter after noon and Harry didn't want to wait too long to call him. What if he made other plans? That wasn't likely since he'd just started at their school the day before, but who knew who else he'd given his number to?

He finally stopped over thinking it and just grabbed his phone. He found his jeans from the day before on his messy floor and fished the piece of paper with Louis' number on it out of the pocket. As he began to diall, the phone rang.

He jumped, causing the phone to fall to the ground.

"Shit... what a dumbass..." he mumbled insults at himself, shaking his head. He picked the phone up and took a glance at the caller ID before answering. "Hello?"

"Harry!" Niall, one of Harry's best mates, shouted his greeting into the phone. His voice was full of excitement, like always. "Guess what?"

"What is it, Niall?"

"They just got a new assortment of gift cards at Tesco and they have some for Nando's! Nando's!" he said. "You have to come down here, man."

Harry laughed. "No thanks. I think I'll stay here."

"No! Harry, you have to. Help me pick some out. I'm gonna stock up. Liam and Zayn are already on their way down here. If you have plans with Felicity, bring her with you. You can't make out while we're looking at cards though. That'll ruin the mood."

"We don't even kiss at all in front of you anymore, not since last time when you threw your shoe at us and it hit me in the dick."

"You deserved it. I know she's your girlfriend and all, but no one wants to see you swap spit."

"Well she's babysitting her brothers today, so don't worry."

"So you're free? Great! Please come. Harold, you have to. I'll buy you one. Or... not. Because I only have so much cash on me. Please come though."

"Okay, okay! Give me ten minutes to get dressed. I'll be there."

"Yes!" Niall hung up without a goodbye, and Harry tossed his phone aside with a groan.

Maybe this was a sign. Maybe this was the world's way of telling him not to call Louis today.

He got up and got dressed, not caring that he looked like he'd just rolled out of bed in a pair of sweatpants and a slightly wrinkled t-shirt under his over-sized jacket, with a white beanie over his curls. He slid his wallet and phone into his pocket and headed out of his room. Once he called out to his mom and told her he was going to the store, he was out the door and walking towards Tesco.

It felt nice outside, Harry thought to himself as he walked. It was pretty warm considering it was February in England. He still needed his jacket but it wasn't the kind of cold that made his nose run and his face turn red. It was nice.

As he walked through the Tesco parking lot, moving to the front doors, he saw two familiar heads up ahead about to walk inside. One belonging to Liam, and the other to Zayn, his other two best mates. Niall really had forced them all to come down there. Harry smiled as he heard the loud laughs of his friends appear and then fade out as they walked into the store. Maybe not calling Louis was a good thing after all. Maybe it was going to be a good day anyway.

But before he knew what was happening, he was being grabbed from behind. A pair of arms locked around his waist, pulling him against them. "Gotcha!"

He didn't recognize the voice at first, the fear of being murdered kind of took over all his senses. He couldn't even get out a scream. He probably should have realized he wasn't in danger though when the hands that were holding onto him started to tickle his stomach.

A second later, as he was laughing uncontrollably despite being scared to death just a second before, he was being released and he turned quickly to face whoever had just grabbed him.

"Louis," Harry said, breathless. "What are you doing? You wanker, you scared me half to death." He pulled the beanie off of his head and tossed it at the older boy who was still laughing.

Louis caught the beanie and pulled it over his own head. "Aw, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." He reached out and poked Harry in the cheek, instantly making him smile, his dimples appearing.

"I thought you were a murderer," Harry said. His words sounded stupid to him now that he knew it'd been Louis behind him.

"No, not a murderer, just a boy wanting a pack of gum. Wait, you think I'd ever hurt you?" Louis asked, wearing a fake pout.

Harry smiled and shook his head. No. Not Louis. He was a nice guy, you could just tell he was from the second you met him. Everything about him was so likable and genuine.

"So what are you doing here? Come to do some grocery shopping?" Louis asked, beginning to walk towards the doors again. Harry fell into step beside him.

"No, my friend Niall called me to come look at some gift cards with him. He's kind of obsessed with this restaurant called Nando's," Harry explained.

Louis laughed and the sound of it caused a warm sensation in Harry's stomach. "I've never eaten there. Is it any good?"

"Wow, don't tell Niall that. He'll force you to go right this very second. The food's pretty good, but he makes it seem like it's the greatest thing on Earth."

"I won't say anything, I promise," Louis said, laughing again as they walked through the doors. Harry heard Niall immediately.

"Liam, no!" He was yelling. "Oh my God, shut up, Liam."

He couldn't hear Liam at first, only Niall's yelling, but they followed the Irish boy's voice to the gift card center and as they approached the three boys standing there, they caught Liam's side of the argument.

"I'm just saying Niall," Liam was saying, sounding aggravated. "If you buy enough gift cards to use all together, it still won't technically be a free meal. You're just spending the money that you would spend on the food, on the cards. All you're doing is giving your money to Tesco instead of Nando's."

"I don't care, Liam, shut up," Niall whined, plucking another gift card up and examining it.

"What did I just walk into?" Harry asked after a few seconds of standing there awkwardly with Louis and not being noticed.

"They're being ridiculous," Zayn groaned. He was stuck in between the two of them and was rubbing his temples. "Neither of them will shut up. They were fighting on the phone earlier and since I was with Liam, I got to hear his side of it. Then when they hung up, I got to hear his side again, along with Niall's side."

Harry laughed softly, stepping forward to give Zayn a small hug as he continued to speak.

"Now they're going at it again and they should be lucky I haven't smacked them yet."

Niall was no longer paying attention to the argument or to Zayn though, and had set his eyes on Louis. "Who are you?" he asked.

"Oh!" Harry pulled away from Zayn and moved back to Louis' side, and if he didn't know any better, he'd think that Louis took a step closer to him. "This is Louis, he's new. He's in my study hall."

Liam was the first to extend his hand for Louis to shake. "I'm Liam. Welcome to Holmes Chapel."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Liam."

A loud laugh came from Niall's mouth. "Oh man. I thought it was Felicity with you at first. I was about to say, she sure did change!"

"Felicity?" Louis asked.

"Harry's girlfriend," Zayn answered.

"Oh," was all Louis said back. He tucked his hands into the pockets of his hoodie and let the conversation fade back to Niall and his Nando's.

Niall settled on four gift cards that, added up, would allow him an almost free meal at Nando's. He'd get one side dish and a small drink for free and the main dish for half off and all he had to do was get two large appetizers and another side. It sounded like a good deal to him.

Once he'd paid for them and Louis bought himself a pack of chewing gum, the five boys exited the store together and stood outside the doors in a disorganized circle.

"You know you just got ripped off, right?" Liam asked, and you could tell he was not-so-silently judging Niall for his purchase.

"I'm happy with it!" Niall shouted.

"Do not do this again!" Zayn yelled. He turned to Harry, his eyes pleading for some help.

Harry stepped forward to clamp a hand over Liam's mouth. "Let the boy be happy, Li. Let him be happy."

He mumbled a 'fine' against his hand, so Harry stepped back to his spot in between Zayn and Louis. Zayn wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulders, pulling him in for a side hug.

"Thank you," he sighed, resting his head on his shoulder. "So much."

Harry laughed, patting him on the back. "You're welcome, Zayn."

When Zayn released him from the hug, it seemed that once again, Louis moved closer. Their arms now pressing against each others.

"So what are the rest of you doing today? Because I'm going out to eat," Niall said.

"I think me and Zayn are going back to mine, we were watching movies before we were forced to come watch you buy gift cards," Liam said.

"Actually, I think I'm going on home for a little bit," Zayn said. "I have to grab a few things I forgot since I'm staying the night at yours. Like another pair of boxers. And my toothbrush. And... well, everything else."

"So forgetful," Liam teased, poking Zayn in the arm, laughing.

"I'm going home, too," Harry said. "We should all do something tomorrow though. Just call me whenever." He nudged Louis in the side and grinned at him. "We can show Louis around."

Niall snorted. "Not much to see, mate."

"Well we'll find something," Liam said. "It'll be fun. That sounds like a plan."

"Great. I'm really looking forward to it," Louis said, smiling.

"Cool, well I'll catch you lads later," Niall said, then added in a sing-song tone, "I'm gonna get some Nando's, I'm gonna get some Nando's!"

He walked - or maybe skipped would be a better word - off through the parking lot. Liam and Zayn went in separate directions, Liam to his place and Zayn to his own, leaving Louis and Harry alone.

"You doing anything now?" Harry asked. "We could hang out, if you want."

"Actually, I can't. I should get back home. My mum might think I got lost if I don't get home soon," he said, and Harry couldn't help but frown at the rejection. "I'll see you tomorrow though. You have my number, so just give me a call."

"Alright, I will."

"Good, I'll be looking forward to it. See you later, Harry."

As Louis walked off, Harry watched him and a smile spread on his face.

Yeah. It was a good day.

The call came at midnight. Harry had just fallen asleep, so he was tired and frustrated as he answered the phone, not even bothering to look at who was calling.

"Hm?" he moaned, still half asleep and not in any mood to talk.

"Harry?" the voice said. "Harry, are you up?"

"Uh huh..."

"Harry!" the voice shouted.

Harry groaned. "Liam, is that you?"

"Yes, Harry, it's me. Are you up?"

"I am now," he yawned, rubbing sleep from his eyes. "What do you want?"

"It's Zayn," Liam said. "He's missing."


End file.
